I felt a cold, simmering curiosity rise inside me. Who would be foolish enough to attack a group of vampires in the heart of the West?
"Kill the leader!" one assassin hissed. His voice sounded rough, like two stones rubbing together.
I smiled under my hood, though they could not see my expression. "You are welcome to try," I replied calmly with a smirk on my lips.
I pulled out my sword smoothly. The steel blade shone in the sunlight. Around twenty assassins emerged from the shadows of the mountains. They moved with the unnatural speed of common vampires, faster than any human or witch, but still far weaker than purebloods like us.
The fight began immediately. Their leader charged at me first, swinging his sword straight toward my neck. I stepped aside with ease, and our blades clashed with a loud clang that sent sparks flying.
In one quick twist of my wrist, I knocked his weapon away. Before he could recover, I drove my sword deep into his chest. The blade scraped against his ribs and pierced his heart. A spray of hot, black blood burst out, soaking my cloak. He gasped in shock. I pulled the sword free and brought it down in a powerful strike, severing his head completely. His head rolled across the ground with a wet sound, and his body collapsed lifelessly.
More assassins rushed toward me. One jumped at me from the side, his sword extended, aiming for my face. I spun low and slashed my sword across his stomach. His flesh parted easily, and his intestines spilled out in a slick, steaming pile.
He screamed in agony and tried desperately to push his guts back inside. I kicked him hard in the jaw, shattering the bone with a sickening crunch. He flew backward and crashed into two of the other assassins.
Noah fought beside me with sharp, deadly movements. He blocked a fierce swing from a female assassin and then stabbed her straight through her eye. The sword came out the back of her head, dripping with blood. He twisted it sharply and ripped it free, tearing away half her face. Blood splashed everywhere around us.
The four members of my Alpha team joined the fight without hesitation. They moved like a well-trained unit. Thorne, one of my strongest warriors, grabbed an assassin by the throat and slammed him violently against a rock.
The impact cracked the rock and snapped the man's spine with a loud pop. Thorne then drove his dagger upward under the assassin's chin, piercing deep into the brain. He twisted the blade hard before dropping the dead body.
The long hours of riding on horses had made the journey boring and tiresome. No one enjoyed sitting on horseback for so many hours. But fighting? This was exciting. My blood rushed. Adrenaline surged through me, sharpening every sense. I could hear every heartbeat, smell the fear mixed with sweat, and taste the copper scent of blood in the air.
Another assassin attacked me with a heavy axe. He swung it down at my head. I ducked under the blow, feeling the rush of air as it passed just above my head. Rising quickly, I sliced his arm at the elbow. The arm, still clutching the axe, dropped to the dry floor. Blood pumped from the stump.
He screamed in pain. I slashed his throat twice with my sword, opening two deep cut on his throat. Blood sprayed out like a fountain, covering my face and hood. He staggered, grabbing his ruined neck, before falling to the ground dead.
Three more assassins attacked me at once. I smirked darkly, enjoying the challenge. The first one aimed low at my legs trying to cut my legs.
I jumped over his sword and hit his nose with my elbow. His nose exploded, and shards of bone were driven into his brain. He dropped dead instantly.
The second swung a curved dagger at me. I blocked it cleanly, then headbutted him with full force. His face caved in with a heavy smack.
As he stumbled, I spun and cut his head clean off. His head flew through the air, trailing blood, and landed with a splash in a muddy puddle.
The third managed to graze my arm with his sword, drawing a thin line of my own blood. The sharp sting only fueled my excitement. I seized his wrist and twisted it until the bones shattered like dry sticks. He cried out in pain.
I rammed my sword through his open mouth and out the back of his head. I twisted the blade hard, tearing his brain. Then I kicked his body away.
The fight went on for several minutes. The forest floor became littered with bodies—severed limbs, split torsos, and rolling heads. Black blood turned the ground into a slippery, muddy mess. The metallic smell of blood hung thick in the air.
My team finished the rest. One assassin had his chest punched in so hard his heart stopped. Another was sliced from shoulder to hip in a deep X-shaped wound, causing his internal organs to spill out in a grotesque pile.
Finally, only one of them was left. He had scars on his face and his eyes burned with hatred. He lunged at me one last time, raising his sword high. I caught his blade against mine, locking them together. Our faces were inches apart as we pushed against each other.
"Who sent you?" I growled.
He spat blood into my face and snarled, "Die, you pureblood bastard!"
I smiled coldly. With a sudden burst of power, I forced his sword aside and stabbed him deeply in the abdomen.
I twisted the blade to tear through his organs. He bent over in pain. I pulled out the sword and slashed across his throat in one final, savage cut. His head almost came off. Blood poured out like a river as he collapsed and died.
I stood there breathing calmly. My cloak was now heavy with blood. The excitement slowly left me. "Pathetic," I muttered.
I cleaned my sword on one of the dead assassin's cloak. Noah came over to me, his own blade still dripping with blood.
"They were desperate," he said quietly.
"Desperate and foolish," I replied. He gave me a small nod of approval.
"Your highness, should we clear the bodies?" Thorne asked me.
"No, let's whoever send them see they fail miserable." I replied to him.
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After the fight, they mounted their horse and continued heading to the west.
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Hazel's POV
The princess reached forward and roughly lifted my chin with her hand, forcing me to look into her eyes. My breath caught in my throat as I stared into her cold, red eyes while she gazed into my hazel ones.
After a moment, she scoffed softly and asked in an icy voice, "What is your name?"
My lips trembled as I answered, struggling to keep my voice steady despite the fear rising inside me.
"Hazel, your highness," I replied.
She continued holding my face, tilting it slightly as if I were an object she was examining, and said, speaking to no one in particular, "You are different."
My heart dropped instantly at those words. Being called different had never meant anything good in my life. I slowly closed my eyes, bracing myself for what I believed would be my end.
I had always known that my life would not end peacefully, but I never imagined it would end like this—standing in front of a vampire princess, waiting for judgement.
I closed my eyes, expecting death at any moment. I waited for the pain, for everything to end, expecting to see myself in heaven, or perhaps just the cold void. . However, instead of pain or death, I heard her voice again.
"We will pick her as our first servant."
My eyes flew open immediately in shock. For a moment, I thought I had imagined her words, but the reactions around me confirmed that I had heard correctly. The slaves gasped loudly, and murmurs of disbelief spread throughout the courtyard. The slave masters stood frozen, their mouths hanging open, and the head slave master looked as though he'd been slapped.
"Me… you are choosing me?" I asked quietly, my voice filled with disbelief as I struggled to understand what was happening. I felt like I was dreaming.
The medium-sized woman standing beside the princess gave me a small nod and mouthed "congratulations" silently.
Tears instantly filled my eyes. "Why me?" I asked, my voice shaking as confusion overwhelmed me. "What do you see in me?"
Mara shouted angrily from nearby, "Yes, why her? She is nothing!"
Yes, why her?" Mara's voice shrieked through the silence. She stepped forward, her face twisted with jealousy. "She is nothing! She's weak! I have worked ten times harder than that brat!"
The princess turned her head slowly and fixed Mara with a cold, dangerous look. The effect was immediate. Mara fell silent and lowered her head, unable to speak another word.
The princess then turned back to me as if nothing had happened."You are my first choice," she said calmly. "You will work in the royal palace. We still need one hundred and seventy-nine more servants."
At that moment, all the emotions I had been holding back overwhelmed me, and tears streamed down my face uncontrollably. It felt like, for once in my life, my legendary bad luck had allowed something good to happen.
The medium-sized woman stepped closer to me and spoke in a firm but steady tone.
"Stay by my side until the selection is complete. Wipe those tears and compose yourself. Your life has changed." She offered me a small, half-smile.
I nodded quickly and tried to control my emotions."Yes, ma'am."
She studied me briefly before speaking again.
"I am Mistress Elara," she continued. "Since the Princess has decided you'll work in the royal castle, I am your overall superior. I am the head of servants in the royal castle and Lunaretha. You will address me with honorifics."
"Yes, ma'am," I answered, my voice still thick with tears.
She nodded in approval.
As I stood beside her, I turned slightly and searched through the crowd until I found Mandy. I silently wished with all my heart that she would also be chosen.
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The selection process continued for three full days. The princess and her group were given comfortable quarters to rest.
During that time, I followed the Mistress Elara everywhere as she assisted the princess. I carefully observed how the princess made her decisions. She asked questions, studied reactions, and tested the slaves in different ways.
Some were given chores under pressure, while others were tested for honesty and obedience. However, I was the only one who did not have to go through any of these tests. I felt truly blessed and lucky.
The slaves who were chosen were gathered together in a separate section in the dorm, and I stayed with them. At night, we whispered excitedly among ourselves about the royal castle and Lunaretha, imagining the lives that awaited us.
Commander Adrian didn't do much during the selection. He was like a living statue, following the Princess with a hand always near his sword, taking occasional notes in a small book. He was terrifying, but he was the one who ensured we were actually fed during those three days.
Mara was eventually chosen as well, along with several others. But when the final person was chosen, I realized with a sinking heart that Mandy was not among the chosen group. My heart shattered.
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On the last day, the princess made her final choice—the confident woman from Mara's group who had been certain she would be picked.
The chosen slaves were filled with overwhelming joy. Their happiness knew no limits but . But I didn't care. I was looking at the crowd of slaves who hadn't been chosen. Mandy was standing there. Her face was a mask of stone. I tried to catch her eye, to offer some sign of comfort, but she shut me out completely. She looked right through me as if I were a stranger—or worse, an enemy.
Princess Lysandra gathered all of us in the courtyard and addressed us,
"All of you who have been chosen will work either in parts of the Lunaretha or in the royal castle. Prepare your belongings. We will depart tomorrow morning and return to the Lunaretha."
We all shouted with joy.
"We're really going to the castle…" one guy whispered to his mate.
A faint smile even appeared on the princess's usually stern face. However, the slaves who had not been chosen broke down in loud sobs and cries of despair. Their sadness filled the entire courtyard.
I felt both excited and heartbroken. Mandy had completely shut me out since the selections. She would not speak to me or even look in my direction. I could not understand what had gone wrong between us.
I turned instinctively to look for Mandy again, but she avoided my gaze completely. It hurt more than I expected, and I could not understand why she was shutting me out. Was she so jealous that she hated me now?
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The next morning arrived. We woke up before dawn, not because we were forced to, but because we were too excited to sleep. The slave masters, following orders from Mistress Elara, provided us with buckets of warm water and a meal of thick bread and salted meat.
We bathed quickly, ate, and gathered in the courtyard as the sun began to rise.
Today was the day we would leave.
Although I felt excited, my heart was still heavy because of Mandy. She had completely avoided me, and I could not understand what I had done wrong.
Soon, the princess, Adrian, the guards, and the Mistress Elara arrived, and everything suddenly felt real.
Commander Adrian stepped forward, and his deep, powerful voice boomed across the open space like he was addressing an army.
"We are heading to Lunaretha," he announced in a strong, authoritative voice. "You must behave yourselves and respect your superiors and all pureblood vampires if you wish to keep your heads."
All of us gasped and murmured nervously. He waited until the whispers died down before continuing.
He nodded slightly. "I trust your head slave master has already instructed you on how to behave in Lunaretha."
"Yes, commander," we answered together in unison. The head slave master smiled with satisfaction.
"Good," he said. "It is time to leave."
He signaled to the guards, who began leading us toward large, comfortable carriages. We were shocked because we had expected to walk the entire distance, as slaves usually did.
As we began moving toward the gate, step by step, leaving the slave camp behind, everything felt like a dream.
"WAIT!!!!!!!!!!! PLEEEASEEEE!"
A loud, desperate voice echoed through the courtyard.
All heads turned toward the source of the voice.